


Sundays at Tiffany & Company

by Strangeredlantern, Vague_Shadows



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Actors, Alternate Universe - Celebrity, Families of Choice, Lawyers, Los Angeles, Lydia Martin & Isaac Lahey - Freeform, M/M, Marriage of Convenience, New York City, New York v. Los Angeles, Other, Relationship of Convenience, jewelry designers, oh my!, post-university
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-11
Updated: 2015-06-11
Packaged: 2018-04-04 00:00:31
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4119340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Strangeredlantern/pseuds/Strangeredlantern, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vague_Shadows/pseuds/Vague_Shadows
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It used to feel like the last ten seconds of a roller coaster all the time with Derek, and Isaac would be fooling himself to think that he didn’t agree to this whole thing without just the slightest hope that it might happen again.</p>
<p>Isaac wishes he hadn't spared a single thought the untouchable ghost that haunted him for nine months in the 6th grade in a good long time, And yet, somehow that ghost or hallucination or whatever Stiles was always seems to occupy a corner of Isaac’s thoughts. But he owes it to Derek to try anyways, right?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Written for the BiteTime Fest's promt: A child's guardian angel reappears in the flesh when they're an adult, about to get married - and the angel claims to be in love with them. Based on the movie Sundays at Tiffany's.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sundays at Tiffany & Company

**Author's Note:**

> As per usual, Vague_Shadows is the amazing support that got me through hurricanes of insecurity to post this. Shower her with love and admiration.
> 
> Although I tried desperately to meet the deadline for this fest, alas it was not meant to be. I still want to continue with the story, so without further ado, I hope you enjoy.

Chapter 1: Monday at Chopard

"The Passion for Excellence"

The revolving glass doors of Tiffany & Co. never lose their shine, still sparkling with potential even in the pounding rain of mid November. Isaac shuffles into one of the four cubicles of the revolving door as tourists squeeze through, at the same time collapsing his black umbrella.

To say he's unused to the suit would be an understatement, but he's never really been a match for Lydia's stare of ‘why are you so incompetent’, even if they were the phone when it was happening this morning. The Academy awards are just a few months away, and with Derek up for best supporting male actor, he figures he owes it to his fiancé to attempt being presentable. 

_It's not like this interview with Gawker is the most important thing for either of their careers_ Isaac chants to himself as he determinedly pushes through the throngs of parents and little girls picking out overpriced key and lock necklaces as souvenirs. Of all the unfair and ruined things in his life, the fact that Tiffany’s is still one of them stings. He makes it to the elevator without really seeing anything but the warm cream carpet of the place, and that's just how he wants things to be. Because the world hates him, a hesitant hand on his shoulder breaks the bubble of safety. Upon turning, he realizes it belongs to a tall and thin teenage girl, biting her lip.

"Aren't you Derek Hale's boyfriend? Why aren't you with him? Oh my God, is he _meeting you here_?! Are you picking out _engagement rings_?!" she all but squeals, and he almost lies and says “yes” just to see if she’ll faint at the thought. 

Instead Isaac just smiles as genuinely as possible and says, “No, just me. I’m headed upstairs for an interview.”

“Oh.”

“Sorry I have to run,” he lies because he is definitely not sorry. 

Interacting with fans is not his thing, not in the least. Usually anyone who recognizes him outside of L.A. has an unhealthy obsession with Derek, and Isaac has exactly no patience for those kinds of people. Isaac prefers passive observation to pretty much any other form of communication. It’s been a point of contention in relationships of the past. Luckily Derek has always understood the need for good silence, especially growing up in the Hale apartments. 

Isaac retreats into the elevator, hoping to avoid any further surprises. He takes a deep breath as the doors close, willing himself not to panic in the enclosed space. The meticulously dressed gentleman next to the elevator buttons asks him along with several other tourists what floors they’d like to go to, but Isaac can’t find his voice to answer. 

Something about the elevator is making him sick in a way he doesn’t want to think about, especially since hasn’t had this problem in _years._

Lydia makes her money as a model and her passion is micro-managing her friends, but before all that, she snuck away to Columbia for 4 years to get herself a degree in psychology and mathematics. She’s far from a medically official source, but she had sounded confident as they were growing up that he wasn’t being haunted.

_You’re so fucking insane that you drove your own personal poltergeist away. Even he couldn’t stand you. He left you._

Isaac would love to tell himself he hasn’t thought of the untouchable ghost that haunted him for nine months in the 6th grade in a good long time, but it would be a massive lie. The yearning for a friend that understood him on every level like Stiles did was eased almost ten years later by the presence of Boyd and Erica when they met at Rhode Island School of Design in Isaac’s sophomore year. And yet, somehow that ghost or hallucination or whatever Stiles was always seems to occupy a corner of Isaac’s thoughts.

Of course the fact that Erica is in town to interview him in the most famous jewelry store in the world is hardly comforting now that he’s stuck in this anxiety spiral until it finishes. He leans heavily on the dark wooden panels, doing his damndest to forget the sly glance Stiles gave him in Tiffany’s entryway before declaring a game of hide and seek while Aunt Lorraine and Lydia picked out her birthday present. All that mattered back then was that Aunt Lorraine didn’t think he was crazy like everyone else did, and that Lydia could sometimes see Stiles and play with them. Dad might have made life a living hell, but Stiles was there for those nine months to sit next to him, to tell him that everything would be better when he grew up and could fight back. Isaac thought that maybe Stiles had gotten lost in the crowds of tourists, and insisted on hunting through the entire seven floors of Tiffany & Co. that Sunday afternoon with Lydia and Aunt Lorraine in tow. But he was gone.

Isaac’s pulled out of his pity party by the jostling tourists as they exit, nodding weakly to elevator attendant when he announces the engagement ring floor. He manages himself out of the dark little room without fainting, and he counts it as a win. Isaac catches sight of Erica’s back, her blond curls tossed by her hand as she examines her other as she holds it aloft, the attendant behind the counter explaining all the unique design elements of the frankly hideous sapphire ring on her finger.

“Erica,” Isaac chides, as he reaches around from behind her. “You can’t honestly think I’d let you buy that thing.”

He pulls the ring off her finger as she turns and puts her hands on her hips, sarcastic smile in place.

“And what the hell do you know, Lahey?” If Isaac was the hugging type, they certainly would have by now. Erica’s always understood just how untouchable Isaac likes to be.

He smiles back at her, and both their grins fade into something much more comfortable. It’s been a couple of years since graduation, and they don’t get much opportunity to see each other. Erica’s a writer and reporter for several different sites these days while Boyd does freelance design in Palo Alto. She’d called Isaac when he and Derek showed up on the news radar as one of Hollywood’s hot new summer couples. Of course, Isaac agreed to the interview on the spot.

“Well, considering I’m on the ‘forefront’ of jewelry design and tastemaking,” Isaac twists his face to look as snooty as possible, “I would say I know enough.”

Erica leans into him and shakes her head fondly, and pulls the ring out of his fidgeting fingers before he can finish counting the facets and critiquing the lazy cut of the stone. “Unworthy of the great Reyes-Boyd union, you’re right.” She hands the ring back to the incredibly confused attendant, who restores it back to the glass case and cautiously walks away as Erica continues to talk.

“My boss told me he pulled a few strings to get us access to the private viewing room here, but I have a feeling you’re not super impressed by that.”

“If I answer you, are you going to put it in the article?”

“Oh, absolutely,” she says offhand as they head towards two dark bronze doors that are opened for them by another sleek and silent attendant as another nods and checks a silver clipboard when they pass through.

Isaac casually throws himself across one of the chaise-lounges in the entirely cream and white almost-apartment, propping himself up in a caricature of an enticing pose. Erica rolls her eyes as she sits opposite him, starting a recording on her phone and pulling up her questions on her iPad.

“I’ve been in the Tiffany Salon a bunch of times with the Hales.”

“You want me to quote you on that? Jesus, Isaac, be a little more eloquent. At least try to live up to your illustrious image. Us west coast hillbillies like to imagine New Yorkers as highbrow, condescending, rich people. Right now you’re only two of the three.”

“Alright, fine. How about ‘When the Hales unofficially adopted me after I emancipated myself, my sisters Laura and Cora loved to bring me here and help them pick out the best pieces.’”

Erica smiles as she taps a few icons on her iPad, settling in and getting comfortable. “Perfect. Thank you for doing all the exposition in your answers, I swear it’s almost like you’ve had media training you didn’t completely ignore. Unlike like a certain someone we know.” She rolls her eyes. Erica hasn’t spent a lot of time around Cora, but to say they clash is the understatement of the century.

“So if Laura and Cora are your sisters, how do you get around that whole brother thing with Derek?”

Isaac untangles himself from his ridiculous pose and stands to take off the suit jacket, laying it against the back of the chaise. He picks up a cookie from the coffee table spread between them, and wanders the room, looks over the stand-alone display case in front of the window revealing the rest of 5th Avenue.

“For the magazine, or are you and Boyd just as confused as I am?”

Erica abandons her journalism tools and goes to join him at the view with her own cookie. “I just don’t understand, Isaac. You know he’s doing better, you don’t owe him this. He has a nomination and Kate is as out of fashion as ponchos. What about the store you wanted to start? With your own line?”

Isaac takes a bite of his cookie in response, trying to keep his face straight. “I love him.” And the words are true, just not the way they should be.

“Oh, Isaac,” Erica sighs.

“I know.”

“So it’s pretty much a done deal then?” Erica questions as she finishes off her cookie, grimacing at the crumbs she’s left on the display case they’ve been leaning on.

“Derek’s lawyers and agents and the rest of his entourage think it’ll be for the best, public image of stability and all before the press and awards tour,” Isaac supplies, recalling the email Derek had forwarded him about the proposal that had been put together with just “would you mind” as his personal note.

“When’s the big day?”

“We’re not even engaged yet, Erica.”

“No, if this is a publicity stunt, I meant on what talk show or interview is he proposing to you? He’s the one doing the proposing, I hope.” The way Erica snaps the consonants of the last few words do plenty to convey her distaste for the whole arrangement.

Isaac’s own disappointment and insecurity with the entire damn thing must show too clearly on his face, and Erica backs down. She resettles herself in the chair she started out with, tugs all of her hair over one shoulder like she usually does when she feels embarrassed. 

“Who’s designing the rings for you two then?” She asks as she feigns interest with her iPad. It’s an apology, and Isaac will take it at this point. This supposedly lighthearted interview, this entire day hasn’t gone according to plan.

Isaac flashes a small smile as he taps his fingers on the glass as he walks around to the other isolated display cases, examining the loose stones, some empty settings and proposed designs within.

“I still have to ask Derek, but I was thinking I would design us a matching set. Something out of the line I’ve been attempting.”

_If Derek’s gonna get something out of this, than so am I. Free advertising. That, and returning the Prodigal Hale back to his loving New York family. The shunning stunt was getting way too dramatic._

The rest of the interview and run-of-the-mill questions about the two of them and their upcoming events together is only a little bit tense after the Derek mishap. Erica makes him promise as they take the marble stairs down the four flights that he’ll come visit Northern California when he’s on the other coast with Derek. Isaac was going to say yes immediately, but was more amused by the organized plan Erica had to convince him before they parted ways. He agrees right as the UberX door closes and winks at her annoyed and fond expression when the car pulls away from the corner of 5th.

The rain has cleared for the time being, and Isaac chooses to walk down the side of Central Park to his apartment and appreciate the fall colors before he’s Derek’s permanent arm candy everywhere but NYC. 

********************************************************************

Derek’s lounging on Isaac’s couch when he steps out of the elevator and into his apartment, which is only moderately surprising. It speaks to the cavernous nature of the space that Isaac didn’t notice Derek at first, a room that can dampen the dazzling presence of _the_ Derek Hale is a rarity; Isaac still loves the vaulted ceilings and towering windows of this apartment. He never feels trapped here, another rarity.

“I thought you were coming to get me in three days and then we were leaving for the press tour,” Isaac says to the living room at large while he walks over to his room to change into something less stifling.

“The team’s new lawyer wanted to see New York for a couple of days, said he’d been dreaming of it since he was a kid,” Derek replies. Isaac can hear the channels of his flat screen flipping rapidly behind Derek’s raised voice.

“Why do you have a lawyer with you?” Isaac asks. He pulls his old and grey Froot Loops sweatshirt on as he walks around the huge black monstrosity of a couch, and flops down to partially cover him. Derek’s only response is to free his trapped arm and wrap it around Isaac, and resettle himself.

Isaac lets them watch the nightly news for ten minutes before he leans into Derek, determined to get him to talk. “A lawyer. You brought a lawyer with you to pick me up. Am I signing a gag order?” He says it as a joke, intended to get Derek out of his head. Derek remains silent and Isaac pushes himself up to glare at Derek. He wishes passionately there was something within arm’s length to hurl at Derek’s head.

“You propose to me over an email,” Isaac seethes as Derek shrinks into the couch, “and then arrive at my home unannounced with a lawyer to keep me quiet about it.”

Derek looks like he’s going to cry, which is much worse than Isaac had anticipated. Derek puts up a good show, but there’s no way he’s over everything that’s happened in the last year and a half. Hell, the last six years if Isaac’s honest with himself.

_Fuck. I don’t want to make this worse. I’m literally in this to make Derek better._

Isaac dials it down a few notches and takes Derek’s hand, tracing over the fingers while he listens to Derek breathe. He recognizes the slow-breathing technique, something Isaac remembers from his own time in rehab as he stares down at Derek’s knuckles and waits.

Eventually Derek curls his hand around Isaac’s, transforming the position from dead fish to a source of comfort for the both of them.

“My, uh… Dr. Morell said it would give me peace of mind if I arranged the proper paperwork. To make me feel safe.” Derek’s voice is low, a mix of anger and insecurity that Isaac completely understands. 

“I didn’t mea-” Isaac sighs before Derek cuts over him.

“I won’t trick you into anything, Isaac. It’s supposedly just standard.” Derek glances away to the TV and then back to Isaac.

“Thank you,” he continues, equally as sincere.

Isaac nods.

“For, well everything.” 

Isaac smiles when Derek reaches to scratch behind his ear like he always does when he wants to hide his adorable blush, and he feels just a trace of what used to be between them back when they were teenagers and so fucking angry at everything in the world. It used to feel like the last ten seconds of a roller coaster all the time with Derek, and Isaac would be fooling himself to think that he didn’t agree to this whole thing without just the slightest hope that it might happen again.

They settle back together and end up watching re-runs of Say Yes to the Dress in a slow-to- diminish awkward silence until Derek breaks it with a chuckle.

“Wha…” Isaac drawls, almost asleep before the outburst.

“That’s just the dress for you.”

Isaac follows his pointing finger to the utter _monstrosity_ on the screen. It’s essentially a bra with six strings attaching the hideous poof of a skirt to a woman explaining how she wants to look “so sexy” for her man on the Big Day. 

“You think that shade of ecru will go with my skin though, finance?” Isaac asks in a mock serious voice while he pushes Derek to the corner of the couch to turn him into a more effective pillow.

“Well you know my position, sweetheart,” Derek murmurs when Isaac wraps himself around Derek’s torso. “As long as you stay within our budget, I think you’ll look beautiful in whatever you choose.”

Isaac snorts and pulls Derek’s arm over his own back before he clunks his head down on Derek’s chest to get comfortable, and Derek oomfs only for effect. It’s like lying on warm bricks but it still feels nice, especially when Derek runs his fingers through the short waves of Isaac’s hair.

“You cut it.”

“You like it?”

Derek’s hands rest heavy on Isaac’s neck and shoulder blade when he yawns. “‘Course I do. Never will understand why you won’t sign with Lydia’s agency.”

“Yeah? You want millions of people to be drooling over me? Jacking off to pictures of me holding perfume with my shirt off?” Isaac meant for it to sound teasing, but the words take his mind to a place he had promised himself he wouldn’t be going to around Derek so soon.

“I want millions of people to be jealous of what I have, and they can only dream of,” Derek says quietly. The vibrations of the words against Isaac’s cheek as he lays over Derek’s torso jolt Isaac’s own stomach. He laughs, but it’s shaky and Derek seizes the opportunity, can tell that Isaac’s willing to be convinced.

“Wanna go to bed?” he rumbles, lightly running his nails in circles by Isaac’s shoulder blades. Isaac turns his head to smile into the fabric of Derek’s t-shirt when he nods his agreement and they disentangle with purpose and direction.

Derek’s still pulling Isaac out of the Froot Loops sweatshirt when a look of remembrance dawns on his face.

“I sent that lawyer kid Lydia’s information so they could hash out terms tomorrow. I hope that’s ok.”

Isaac nods, working through Derek’s reasoning as quickly as he gets the button and zipper undone on Derek’s jeans. Peter’s not the Hales’ official lawyer, but usually they run personal litigation and sensitive contracts by him for opinion from time to time.

“Don’t want Peter and the family to know what’s going on? Think Lydia won’t tell?” Derek grunts as Isaac shoves his hand down the newly revealed boxer briefs, and Isaac plans on being just a little merciless. He holds Derek’s half-excited dick just on the edge of too tight, pulling fast towards himself. Derek stumbles into him and wraps his arms around Isaac in a hug, breathes hotly into his neck before scraping his teeth up the cord of muscle there.

Derek sucks on Isaac’s earlobe and lets just the tip of his tongue tease Isaac, and it’s like no time has passed at all when Isaac groans like a 17 year old virgin, his voice too high and excited, and way too embarrassing. Derek smiles against his neck as Isaac rolls his eyes at himself.

“You really wanna talk about our family right now?” Derek breathes into Isaac’s ear, so hot and overwhelming that Isaac almost collapses into the man wrapped all over him.

“Don’t think we’re not gonna talk about this after-” Isaac manages before Derek pushes them onto his bed and stops Isaac from being able to form any words at all.

**************************************************************************

**Author's Note:**

> Please feel free to let me know if there are any missing tags. As the story goes on, I'll be adding more. I didn't want to reveal too much in the tags at first, but again, don't hesitate to let me know. 
> 
> Thanks for reading :D


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